SPIN
April 2011
Link
7/10
Zen and the art of getting indie-rock dudes to dance
Off-kilter psych-pop tunes and ultra-sleek dance beats share plenty of DNA. The Beatles owned an early Moog; Electric Light Orchestra used Giorgio Moroder's studio. Starfucker is another computer-OK purveyor of candy-colored guitar confections, part of a line that runs from Flaming Lips to Super Furry Animals to Of Montreal to MGMT. With dance-rock standouts like "Julius" and "Bury Us Alive," the Portland quartet's third album is its best yet. It's also the third straight to sample '60s hippie guru Alan Watts over gaudy '80s synths. If the overarching life-from-death concept doesn't quite cohere, well, that's probably healthy.
